Contra Costa County home prices slowly rise as housing market slows

Concord Corporate Centre, a two-building office complex at 1320-1390 Willow Pass Road in Concord. (Newmark)

MARTINEZ – Falling prices for many commercial properties, such as office buildings, have undermined property values ​​in Contra Costa County, an annual government report shows.

While property values ​​in Contra Costa County are rising, their increase has been at its slowest pace in three years, reflecting weakness in sectors such as commercial real estate.

The sluggish increase in property values ​​could lead to a decline in property tax revenues for municipal, regional and county governments in Contra Costa County.

According to a report released by the County Assessor’s Office, the total value of real estate in Contra Costa County for the 2024-2025 tax rolls was $278.84 billion.

Contra Costa County real estate values ​​increased 4.2%, or $11.16 billion, as of January 1, 2024, compared to the previous year. The current assessment represents a record high for real estate values ​​in the county.

Still, Contra Costa County is showing some signs of weakness, as a review of the county’s assessment reports from recent years shows.

The 4.2% increase was the lowest annual rate of increase in property values ​​in Contra Costa County since the 2021-2022 assessment period three years ago, which applied to property values ​​beginning in January 2021.

The sluggish increase in real estate values ​​in this part of the East Bay follows on the heels of a tough environment for office building prices in the Bay Area.

Contra Costa County was also not spared from the brutal trends in the commercial real estate sector.

“The office building business has dropped dramatically,” said Gus Kramer, Contra Costa County tax assessor.

The values ​​of residential and commercial properties also began to falter.

Here are some examples of real estate transactions in 2023 that indicate weaker values ​​for commercial real estate:

– The Concord Corporate Center in Concord was purchased for $20 million, a staggering 68.5% drop from the office building complex’s value in 2017.

– A Concord Centre in Concord was purchased in August 2023 for $40.5 million, a 42.6% decrease from its 2017 value.

– The NoMa Apartments in downtown Walnut Creek were returned to the residential property lender after the apartment complex’s developer defaulted on a $79.8 million loan.

Concord, Walnut Creek and San Ramon saw the smallest increases in assessed values, the report shows.

In Walnut Creek, estimated values ​​rose by 1.5%, in Concord by 1.7% and in San Ramon by almost 3%.

According to the County Assessor’s Office report, the cities with the largest increases in value included Martinez, Oakley, Antioch and Richmond.

This is how the cities with the largest increases in unit values ​​performed:

– Martinez, up 6.1%

— Oakley, up 5.2%

– Antioch, plus 5%

– Richmond, up 4.7%

The revenue from property tax depends on the assessed value of the properties in question.

This means that a slow pace of appreciation could also lead to a decline in tax revenues going to the government and local authorities in Contra Costa County and surrounding cities.

“This could have an impact on the budgets of cities and counties,” Kramer said. “It has a significant impact on the services that cities and counties provide.”

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